The Thousand Character Classic

"People, walk, dog, tree..."

In the backyard, Jiang Ding held a bound book, occasionally muttering to himself.

Thousand Character Classic

Bored and with nothing to do, he went out for a stroll and got his hands on a primer for young children, complete with simple illustrations. He planned to use it to learn the written language of this world.

His progress was quite fast. Since they were still block characters and he had the pictures for reference, and he occasionally went to the front yard to ask Huang Deyou for help, learning wasn't difficult.

After some thought, he took out the Divine Firmament Hundred Pace Flying Sword that Gong Caiyu had given him.

Over the past two days, he had easily gathered information about the founder of the Seven Profound Sect.

Legend had it that a thousand years ago, the Seven Profound Master was invincible in the martial world. He established a vast legacy, so much so that even imperial successions required the heir apparent to ascend Seven Profound Mountain and receive permission before they could ascend the throne.

The Seven Profound Master's most famous martial art was the Hundred Pace Flying Sword. Rumor had it that within a hundred paces, he could easily take a person's head, even that of an Innate Martial Artist. His might was terrifying.

Unfortunately, after the Seven Profound Master, the Seven Profound Sect rapidly declined, and no one ever mastered this sword technique again.

"Learning it is impossible. The martial arts of these natives come with all sorts of risks and cut off future paths."

Jiang Ding touched the grip of the handgun hidden in his sleeve. "But if I could master the Immortal Sect's Hundred Pace Flying Sword, my ability to protect myself would skyrocket. I wouldn't have to worry about exposing modern firearms and attracting unknown trouble."

This world was far from peaceful.

In the front yard, Huang Deyou was leading a group of temporarily hired people in cleaning and building a new counter, the sounds of hammering and sawing filling the air.

Suddenly, it all went quiet.

Huang Deyou jogged over, a slight sheen of sweat on his forehead. He lowered his voice and said, "Boss, people from the Wild Wolf Gang are here. They say they're here to collect monthly protection fees."

"They're quite well-informed," Jiang Ding chuckled. "Just give it to them. It's no big deal."

In this kind of feudal society, the government's ability to manage was extremely limited, creating many power vacuums that were filled by gangs, clans, and the like. It was unavoidable.

Huang Deyou's forehead grew sweatier. "Boss, it's not just that. Besides the monthly fee, they're demanding five taels for 'opening the door' money. That's four times more than other shops in the area. The key is that these wolf cubs are never satisfied, no matter how much you give them."

Jiang Ding said calmly, "They think we're an easy target. Invite them over."

A short while later, three burly men, who had deliberately bared their muscular chests, kicked the door open and entered.

The scarred man leading them said coldly, "Shopkeeper, you've got some nerve, making us brothers come see you. I, Liu Qi, can overlook it, but are you looking down on the Wild Wolf Gang?"

The two men behind him chimed in, "You've got a lot of guts!?"

Jiang Ding looked at these thugs with a hint of curiosity.

They had a blue dragon tattooed on their left arm and a white tiger on their right. Scars adorned their chests and arms. They carried long objects wrapped in black cloth on their backs, most likely knives.

They exuded an aura of desperation, the kind that made Huang Deyou unable to cope.

Clang!

A cold glint slowly rose from the scabbard.

Jiang Ding stood up. He didn't have the arrogance of "a true swordsman doesn't strike unknown opponents." The strong could be killed, and even ants weren't beneath his notice.

The scarred man, Liu Qi, his expression changed, and his hand shot back to grip his sword hilt. His reaction was swift, indicating extensive combat experience.

"Come, cut me once," Jiang Ding said.

Liu Qi's eyes narrowed as if he were being stared at by a ferocious beast.

The two men beside him stopped their curses.

Huang Deyou secretly glanced over and noticed that the desperate aura emanating from these men seemed to have vanished, making them appear harmless.

"Young hero, we were blind and didn't recognize your greatness..."

After waiting for a moment, the three men remained motionless. Liu Qi forced a smile onto his face.

In the martial world, discernment was paramount.

"I told you to cut me once," Jiang Ding's smile vanished, his expression turning blank. "Or I'll kill you."

Liu Qi's face changed. He had a very clear premonition of what was coming.

"Young hero, forgive my offense!"

He gritted his teeth and swung his saber forward. It was precise and fast, the blade's light stirring up a sharp wind capable of cutting skin. He had earned the reputation of "Wind Splitting Blade" within the Wild Wolf Gang.

Clink!

He saw a silver star, moving faster than his own strike, precisely hitting a weak point three inches above his saber's hilt, not missing by an inch.

Then, an immense force erupted without warning, smashing him against the wall behind him. He spat up blood uncontrollably.

The two burly men, who had been about to rush forward to help, found their feet rooted to the spot, not daring to look ahead.

They were ferocious towards ordinary small shopkeepers, but their discernment was sharp. They knew that even if the two of them attacked, it would be suicide.

"Do you submit?"

Jiang Ding sheathed his sword and said indifferently.

"I surrender, I surrender! Thank you, young hero, thank you, young hero!"

The scarred strongman ignored the blood gushing from his chest and kowtowed repeatedly, smoothly and without hesitation.

"I have some business to attend to, so I won't be keeping the three of you for tea."

Jiang Ding sat back down and focused his gaze on the book.

The three scrambled away, wishing they had an extra pair of legs, and fled the backyard as if flying.

"Steward Huang."

"Yes, Master! I'm here!" Huang Deyou flinched.

Jiang Ding said calmly, "Take them one tael of monthly money and one tael of opening money. Tell them that if they dare not collect the monthly fee next month, their legs will be broken."

"Yes, Master!"

Huang Deyou quickly followed.

These small gangs might seem insignificant, but they can only establish themselves if they have a protective umbrella. He didn't want to get involved in any trouble.

In the high school cultivation room.

Sweat poured from his body like a spring, drenching his clothes. After drinking the Essence Condensing Bone Strengthening Soup in one gulp, Jiang Ding glanced at the pale blue figure in front of him.

His straight, slightly curved spine was like a dragon or a snake. Most of it had been tempered, with only thirteen bone joints remaining at 23%, 5%, and so on.

"It's only because we Immortal Sect students have the Array Spirit Computer to assist us," Jiang Ding sighed. "If it were martial artists from other realms, tempering their chest bones and lumbar vertebrae would be good enough, and they could only temper them to forty or fifty percent at most."

"Going further is impossible. Even martial artists in the Inner Qi Realm or Innate Realm cannot observe it, let alone temper it."

Flesh, bones, skin – not a single bit was spared, all tempered to the extreme.

The ultimate achievement was one of the Immortal Sect's vital intellectual crystallizations, a product that seemed miraculous to outsiders: the artificial Dao Body Prototype.

[Name: Jiang Ding]
[Student ID: 1246215]
[Realm: Bone Refining Realm Peak]
[Training Subject: Sixty-eighth Set of Eagle's Takeoff Sword Art (Proficiency 99%)]

The proficiency on the panel flickered slightly, jumping to 100%, then blurring and changing.

Minor Accomplishment 1%!

Jiang Ding's spirit flickered. Countless days and nights of unceasing sword practice, the scenes of practicing sword since obtaining the broken sword tip, and the scene of him charging into the bandits alone, with flesh and blood flying.

Countless accumulations erupted, breaking through a certain bottleneck.

In his swordsmanship, which had been difficult to advance previously, something new seemed to have appeared.

Clang!

Unconsciously, the sword was drawn, and a bright silver circular arc of rules bloomed.

The arc was still an arc, still standard, so precise that even a vernier caliper would find no fault, yet one could clearly feel a touch of agility.

"That's it."

A realization dawned on Jiang Ding: "The extreme of proficiency is merely executing the sword art rigidly, like a machine program. But Minor Accomplishment is the ability to make preliminary micro-adjustments to the sword art, transforming it from someone else's technique into one's own."

Sword light flashed, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, and it seemed to fill the entire training room.

After completing a set of sword moves, Jiang Ding's face was pale, and sweat covered his body.

"No, Minor Accomplishment in the Sixty-eighth Set of Eagle's Takeoff Sword Art has too high a training efficiency and is too taxing on the body. Forcing myself to continue will be harmful!"

"I need a qi tonic!"

The Essence Condensing Bone Strengthening Soup provided by the school was for all students and simply wasn't enough.

Jiang Ding sheathed his sword and rested for a long time before showering and changing his clothes to return to class.

After school.

Figures flew through the sky, and people moved more than ten meters at a time through the treetops using the Wind Riding Technique. The two on the ground walked with their eyes straight ahead.

"Congratulations."

Jiang Ding examined him carefully for a moment and said to Li Junhao, "You've broken through to the Flesh Refining Realm."

The three realms of body refining don't have much of an aura, but they can be judged by stride length, skin luster, and other characteristics. Especially since Li Junhao had just broken through, he couldn't control his strength perfectly, and his walk was a bit awkward.

"Haha!"

Li Junhao was full of spirit. "Old Jiang, I, Li Junhao, am also a martial arts genius, a late bloomer, and today is the day!"

After laughing, he sighed, "I took your advice and thought it made sense, so I added some extra training these past few days. I didn't expect to break through so quickly. I feel much better mentally than before."

"The liberal arts and cultivation are inherently complementary, one being theory and the other practice," Jiang Ding nodded. "If we reach the Inner Qi Realm, our grades in cultural subjects should also increase slightly."

Although Inner Qi is not as good as Magic Power, it is still a form of energy.

With this as a basis, understanding talismans, cultivation methods, mountain geography, and spiritual meridians will naturally become easier.

Waving goodbye to Li Junhao, Jiang Ding got on the bus, but instead of going home, he headed towards the city center library.